Means for drilling wells



1935- J. P. LAWLOR 2,016,785

MEANS FOR DRILLING WELLS Filed Aug. 15, 1934 2 Sheets-$heet 1 5'8 INVENTOR.

' BY J"? LAWLUR ATTORNEY.

J. P. LAWLOR Filed Aug. 15, 1954 2 Sheets-Sheet 2 IN VENTOR.

E m o n A Get. 8, 1935.

' I MEANS FOR DRILLING WELLS" New, .9 9 A mim gi'slmi, strainer-ma n vide a means. 'rordrnungjwus thatinsuresasubstantiailylstraight hole.; 1, V.

a sun; wither. object. of this "invention is to pfm ldl a wen.- drilling gapparatusfthat is easuy l5 operated and under the complete control or operatorat alitimeslk 1 A sun further" object or n39 sesame t pro? vide a wen ennui; ,bit that is fib foper dynamic balanceand on'el'of. sell-centeringproperties;

29-, f A stiil'iurther object army inventionfis'topro yide. a well drilling a'pparatusthat is economical in manufacture anddurable inuse. we

those skilied in the.

, 'I'hesex and otherfobjects f'willhe I appa ent to 5- My invention consists in the construction at;

vrarig'elnent and combination of v the yarious i parts oi the device whereby the objects contemplated are, attained as hereinafter more fully set forth,

- pointedfoutin my 'ciaiinsand illustrated in the accompanying drawings',.1n1 vhich:

1 :1 isfa" sideyiew ,offrn'y rotary well drill and cooperating element's' inoperation.

A Fig; 271s enia'r'gedlviewbf the. upper portion o1; mylw'ell drill withsections out away'to more 35;. rullylillustrate its interiorconstruction] 1.

.3 8 3 i r laree n anv fiw o h sui timetamemid1stakenoniiu 3+3 F g.2.

V Fig. 4 is. an enlarged cross-sectional view or my drill bit'taken on line H .ofFig, 2.

I 1 Fig.5 isgan erila-rgeiil View. of the. wormgea rf :n echanism for holding; lowering, andraising the drilling mechanism.

- F 61 an enl r 'edw tettbm'heifer 51y m y drilibit.

m the resent assent-firi ga lments;

the rotary ,drill type the cutting" bit; usually opcrates at a speed ranging between sixty" and i one hundred. twenty revolutions per minute. 'jihe transmitted from the prime mover" to' the shaft uyfl 'system of 'g'ears','fbelts, oriike. Such construction and ineth'ojdl'of. operationis very slow and the resulting hole is far from straight; 'Also, present. bit. heads are poorlyfdesigned, are of 55 minimum height, and tendto cut at a. tangent to the longitudinal axis of'the hole-being armed.- '1 .haveovercome such objections as will hereinafter be appreciated.

' Referring to the drawings, I have used'th'e nuinerhl III to designate an ordinary derrick having a power for rotating the drilling shaft and vhit is I has wheel I at its top. Such a aerricmrnk structure is directed over"the.ar'ea in which the i eu s tobedriHedI "The numeral l2'designates a table'base' designed to be pro'perly secured below the; derrickand over the wel1to"bedug.-'- 'I'he 5* numerals l3 and H-desigh'atetWo detachable s'ec-' tions form the central portion of the base- .l 2-,as shown irr'Fig. 3; The numeral I 5- designates the housing or a prime mover; suitabletype I p I of primefmo'vermay be used, but "I recommend an 10. t i ma ria is m' i w :1 s aman- I orprinie mover. {The numeral" desigiiatesf the iyei'tibal Shaft bf th veitical electric i motori Thisjshdft I 6 is hollow and" extends a substantial distance above and below the motor proper; AS 1- shown in Fi'g.*2; the armature of the electric motoris'j inside-the motor housing .li 'and is secured to I andarfleunu the shaft I6: "The numeral n designatesaniauxiliaryihousing secureditdthe top of the motor housing" and embracing the upper 29 portion of the shaft l6. This shaft I6 barelyextends through thetop'oi'the housing I! and-is water: sealed atlthe point 01' its passage-"through the housing IT by packing' l8 and packing re-' tainingfelement [9. "The numeral designates 3 hand holes in the side wall ofthe housing IT. "The numeral' 2| designates a" lower thrust" bearing inside thehousing' I! and; secured to the t'op"oi the motor housing 'I 5: The numeral 22 designates 1a complementary thrust bearing rigidly secured on the'shaftiii and inengagement 'with the (thrustbearing 2 I 'I he "numeral' 23 'designates a lock nut o'n-the shaft l 6 for locking the thrust bearing 22 against-accidental displacement. 1

"1he numerals 2l -desi'gnates a-"ciroular plate "rigidly 'secure dto: the shaft l6 by being clam'ped between theflockfnut '23 and thrust bearing '22.

Thisplateflis curved downwardly and outward-r 1y nearfits' periphery and its use will hereinafter be appreciated. The" numeral 25 designates-5 a 0 drain pipe communicating with the inside bottom portion or the housing l 1-. The numeral designatesa water jacket housing oi inverted cupconstructionrigidly,se'curedto the top'of the-housing 1 1 andeinbracingand communicating with the mside tdp'of theshaft I611 The numeral 2'! desig- 'nat'esan-inlet pipe communicating with the inside c of the housing? The numeral" 28 designates a bail element secured to theupp'erportionoi'the housing}; "i'Ifh e numeral "29 designates-an elongated downwardly extending guide bearing member'secured 'byspot weld-ingor like" to the bottom. of the motor housing l5. This bearing member 29 looselyembracesthe shaft l6 which protrudes a {short "distanceibelow its lower end. The numerals 30 and3 li designate diametrically opposed longi "tudinally extending ribs on the periphery of the bearing member 29. This bearing member and "ribs 3]! and 3| extendinto andythrougha 'con plementary opening andcomplementary-slotways in 9 of. the body of the bit.

and rigidly holds them together. I have used the numeral 33 to generally designate my drill bit which is secured to the lowest of the shaft sections 32. The body portion of this bit is of elongated cylindrical proportion and has on its dead center bottom, a centering point 34.

The longitudinal central water passageway 35 of the bit has its upper end communicating with the inside of the hollow drill shafts 32 anclits lower end communicating with the bottom of the} bitby three outlet passageways 38 which terminate at spaced apartpositions around the lcentering point 34. The numeral 31 designatesa plurality'of passageways having their upper ends communicating withithe .top of the body of the bit and theirlowerends communicating with the bottom The numeral 38 designates a peripheral row ofcutting teeth on the bottom of thedrill bit. The numeral 39 designates cut:

ting blades on the bottom .of the drill bit extend ing /outwardly from the centering point; 34, as shown in Fig, 6.. The numeral 40 -designates' a -water' pump shownin conventionalform: and operated by a motoLJJ also shown in convene tional form. The numeral.42 designates the outlet pipe of the pump 40. Such water pumping apparatuses are universally used in the drilling of wells and I use thesamesystern, i. e. forcing water down :to the bottom. of the hole being drilled, permitting it to how upwardly around the drill shaft and out through a drain or like 43 at the top of the well, carryingwith it the material cut loose by the bit at the bottom of the hole.

The numeral 44 designates a flexible hose having one end connected to the pipe 21 and its other end to the pipe 42. The numeral 45 designates a rotatably'mounted drumhaving a shaft 46., The numeral-4ldesignates a worm gear on the shaft 46. The numeral 49 designates a rotatably mounted shaft capable of being rotated in either direction by the hand crank 49. The numeral 59 designates a small worm gear on the shaft 48 and in engagement with the worm gear 41. )The nu-. meral 5iv designates a cable having one end secured to the drum 45, its central portion embracing the cable wheel ll, and its otherfend secured to the ball 28. The numeral 52 designates a well hole in the earth 53. The numeral 54 designates an oil cup for furnishing oil to the device,v

The practical operation of the device is asjfollows: The prime mover, supported ipam, drill shaft, and drill bit aremanually lowered byf the crank 49 untilthe drill bit is in suitable engagement with the earth. With the prime moverrun- ,ning, the drillbit'will naturallydrill and cut into the earthand will continue to move downwardly in the well .hole it cuts by periodical adjustment of the cable 5| by the crank arm 49'. This downward movement of the drill bit will continue until the housing l5 of. thepfipimover reaches the plate bas'e l2, at which time it will be necessary to reverse'the rotation of the crank arm 49 and raise the prime mover, bearing element 29. drill shaft, and drill to an elevated position 'where the lower end of the bearing 29 and lower end of the shaft 16 will be above the plate 12. With the motor stopped, the drillshaft will be funScreWed from the lower end of the shaft l6 and another drill shaft section 32 added to the drill shaft, after which the now increased length of drill shaft will be threaded onto the lower end of the shaft IS.

The apparatus is then again manually lowered to 5 alpoint where the lower. end portion of the bearing member 29 extends through the opening in the plates 13 and I4 and the drill bit is again in proper engagement with the bottom of the hole. I The motor is then again turned on and drilling 10 operations resumed. This procedure is repeated until the well has been drilled the desired depth. The length of the bearing member 29 will be substantially the depth a hole can be sunk before it becomes necessary to again elevate the apparatus 15 andinterpose another section in the drill shaft. The apparatus should .be loweredbythe adjustment' of the cable slfasrapidly as the bit will efficiently cut and the prime mover can successfully rotate the same. A j The operator may easily and quickly determine the propermanual adjustment of the cable and the lowering of the apparatus by watching the power load of the prime mover. Any suitable instrumentmay be used to gauge this and in Fig. 25 2 Iv show a gauge 55 interposed in the electriclead wires 56 ofthe prime'mover. By observing this gauge an operator may operate the crank arm 43 to the right or to the left to obtain the proper contact .ofthe lower gendfof the drill bit with formation being. drilled. The V ribs '39 andf3l slidably engage the plates 13 and I4 respectively, thereby vpreventing the rotation of the prime mover housing and bearing member 29. j

My method of getting water to the-bottom of 35 the. hole is an important phase in the construction of my apparatus. The waterfrom the'pump 49 i is forcedthrough the flexible hose 44 into the housing 26; The flexible hose 44 permits the lowering and raising of the prime mover as herebe- 40 the shaftv 32 from which ltpasses out of the top of the well in the usual manner. By passing'the water through the prime mover shaft a desirable water connection can be obtained and the motor kept in ajrelatively cool condition during its operation. If any water should] leak through and around the packing material l9 it will'drop onto 'the plate 24, whichjrotates with'the' shaft IS.

The rotation of this plate 24wi1l,'by' centrifugal force, cast-this undesirable water to the sides of the housing I I, thereby preventing the same from getting into the inside of theprime mover housing anddamaging the'motor; As a further precaution against any water getting into the motor housing the outer peripheral edge of the plate 241s bent downwardly and outwardly to loosely embrace an upwardlyextending cup portion shown in Fig. 2. The water collected in the hous- '5| on the bearing member 2|, as

ing 2'I eventually passes-from the same through thedrain pipe 25;

' From the foregoing it will be seen that the primemover, its supported elements, the bearing guideway 29, drill shaft, and bit will be freely floating inasmuch as they are suspended by cable from the top of the derrick. This phase of the apparatus is very important and promotes not the 30 u the control of the operator it will be unnecessary for any excessive strain to be put on either the motor, drill bit, or drill shaft. The drill shaft will at all times be kept in proper alignment with the hole being dug by virtue of the bearing guide member 29, which in turn will be held in proper position at all times by the cable BI and contact with the table base. The true and straight cutting of the drill bit is encouraged by its novel construction and design. By making the body portion of the drill bit of substantial height as shown in Fig. 1, it will have a tendency to conform with the hole being drilled and to be held thereby in a straight position. The point 34 and peripheral teeth 38 also aid in causing the drill bit to out true and straight. By a substantial portion of the entire drilling apparatus being suspended from the top of the derrick, not only will it be possible to obtain a substantially straight hole, but the drillbit may be successfully rotated at a speed of several hundred revolutions per minute. As shown in the drawings, the speed of rotation of the drill bit will be the same as that of a prime mover.

Some changes may be made in the construction and arrangement of my improved means for drilling wells without departing from the real spirit and purpose of my invention, and it is my intention to cover by my claims any modified forms of structure or use of mechanical equiva vlents which may be reasonably included within their scope.

I claim:

1. In a device of the class described, a base plate having an opening, a vertical guide bearing member slidably mounted in the opening of said base plate, a prime mover secured to the upper end of said bearing member having a motor shaft extending downwardly and through said bearing member, a drill shaft detachably secured to the lower end portion of said motor shaft, a drill bit on said drill shaft, and a. means for regulating the sliding movement of said guide bearing member.

2. In a device of the class described, a base plate having an opening, a vertical guide bearing member slidably mountedin the opening of said base plate, notches in said base plate and adjacent said opening therein, vertical rib members on said guide bearing member slidablyengaging said notches in said base plate respectively, a prime mover secured to the upper end of said bearing member having a motor" shaft extending downwardly and through said bearing member, a drill shaft detachably secured to the lower end portion of said motor shaft, a drill bit on said drill shaft, and a means for vertically sliding said guide bearing member in theopening of said base plate.

3. In a well drilling apparatus of the rotary type, av prime mover having a hollow vertical motor shaft, a hollow drill shaft operatively connected to said motor shaft and communicating with the inside of the same, a housingloosely embracing .one end portion of said motor shaft, thrust bearings inside said housing and embracing said motor shaft, a plate rigidly secured on said motor shaft inside said housing and above said thrust bearings, a second housing designed to be in communication with a sourceof fluid underpressure-and communicating with the inside of said motor shaft, and a material agitating element on said drill shaft.

4. In a. device of the class described, a base member having an opening, a vertical guide bear- 5 ing member slidably mounted in the opening of said base plate, a means for preventing the independent rotation of said vertical guide bearing member relative to said base plate, a shaft extending downwardly and through said bearing 10 member, a prime mover secured to the upper end of said bearing member and operatively secured to said shaft, a drill shaft detachably secured to the lower end portion of said shaft, 9. material agitating element on said drill shaft, and a means 15 for vertically sliding said guide bearing member in the opening of said base plate.

5. In a well drilling apparatus of the rotary type, a prime mover having a hollow vertical motor shaft, a hollow drill shaft operatively con- 20 nected to said motor shaft and communicating with the inside of the same, a material agitating element on said drill shaft, a housing loosely em: bracing the upper end portion ofsaid motor shaft at a point slightly below the upper end of the 25 motor shaft and above said prime mover, thrust bearings inside said housing embracing said motor shaft, a horizontal plate rigidly secured on said motor shaft inside said housing and above said thrust bearings, a conduit element designed so to be in communication with a source of fluid under pressure communicating with the inside top of said motor shaft, and a fluid draining means communicating with the inside of said housing at a point below said plate.

6. In a well drilling apparatus of the rotary type, a prime mover having a. hollow vertical motor shaft, a hollow drill shaft operatively connected to said motor shaft and communicating with the inside of the same, a material agitating 0 element on said drill shaft, a housing loosely embracing the upper end portion of said motor shaft at a point slightly below the upper end of the motor shaft and. above said prime mover, thrust bearings inside said housing embracing 45 said'motor shaft, 9. horizontal plate rigidly secured on said motor shaft inside said housing and above said thrust bearings, a vertical screening collar for said thrust bearings inside said housing, and extending upwardly toa point just below said 60 plate, a conduit element designed to be in communication with a source of fluid under pressure communicating with the inside topof said motor shaft, and a fluid draining means communicating with the inside of said housing at a point below 56 said plate.

'1. In a well drilling apparatus of the rotary t a prime mover having a hollow vertical motor shaft, a hollow drill shaft operatively connected to said motor shaft and communicating 60 with the inside of the same, a housing loosely embracing one end portion of said motor shaft, thrust bearings inside said housing and embracing said motor shaft, a plate having its marginal edge bent downwardly rigidly secured on said 

